324 3Iodern Languages, [Chap. XV. 



but with, perhaps, less judgment, he has investi- 

 gated the history of nations through the same 

 medium *. 



Large and curious collections of languages re- 

 markably abounded in the eighteenth century. 

 Among these the collection of J. Lorenzo liervas, 

 a native of Spain, but residing at Rome, deserves 

 respectful notice. This learned man, in his great 

 work, entitled Idea dd Ujikerso^ gave a general 

 synopsis of all known languages, their affinities, 

 differences, &c., of which the best judges have 

 spoken in terms of higli praise. Of later date the 

 Fhilosvphical and Critical Estimate of Fourteen 

 Ancient and Modern European Languages, by D, 

 Jenisch, of Germany, is aUo a valuable acquisition^ 

 to the student of philology. 



But the most extensive collection of modern 

 languages which the last age produced,, was that 

 formed toward the close of it, by the learned aca- 

 demicians of St. Petersburgh, in Russia. The 

 empress Catharine 11 conceived the vast design 

 of compiling a '' universal and comparative vo- 

 cabulary of all languages,'* and ordered such a 

 work to be undertaken. Accordingly Mr. Pallas, 

 a distinguished member of the Imperial Academy 

 of Sciences, assisted by a number of other learned 

 men, engaged in the arduous task, and laid the 

 first part of the work before the public in 17^(5, 

 and anotlier portion of it three years afterwards. 

 Ihis Comparative Vocdhularij f may justly be 



■* Monde Vihnitif analf/se ti cconparc uvec Ic 2Ionde Modcrne. 

 9 tftin. 4to. 



f Lini^uarum fotiiis Orbis Vocahularin Comparafiva; Aui^udis- 

 iiimc Cura ajlitda. Lcctloinspima ^ Lingvas lluropctj d jtditc cvm* 



